


You Done Tattooing That Piano?

by ericsonclan



Series: OG World [40]
Category: The Walking Dead (Telltale Video Game)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Love Confessions, Young Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-26
Updated: 2020-07-26
Packaged: 2021-03-06 05:42:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,857
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25538242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ericsonclan/pseuds/ericsonclan
Summary: After missing her chance to tell Louis how she really feels, Clementine comes up with another way to reveal her affections.
Relationships: Aasim/Ruby (Walking Dead: Done Running), Clementine/Louis (Walking Dead: Done Running)
Series: OG World [40]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1815361
Kudos: 25





	You Done Tattooing That Piano?

**Author's Note:**

> (by Laura)
> 
> Written after playing Louis' friendship route and being convinced the entire time that those two were just fooling themselves by labelling what they have as "friendship". Those crazy kids...

Clementine was in trouble. Here she was, nearly two months into meeting Louis, and all she seemed to be able to think about in every spare moment was him. This shouldn’t be a bad thing. After all, she’d never expected she’d even get a chance to feel like this again. The last time anything even approaching these feelings hit her, she’d been young, alone and too focused on her mission to pursue anything further. Now she had a home, a family, a boy who made her spine tingle every time he smiled at her from across the picnic table... she was finally in a place where she could start a relationship. The only problem? She was pretty sure she’d already turned Louis down.

She hadn’t known what to expect that night she decided to accompany Louis to the piano room. Hearing the music fill the room as Louis sat alone in the candlelight had stirred something within Clementine, a feeling that at that time she couldn’t quite place. Sitting beside Louis at his beloved piano in the dead of night had driven one truth home for Clementine: she cared for this boy, deeply. But when the knife was placed in her hand and she’d finished carving her initial next to Louis’, Clementine had frozen. Everything was happening too quickly. She’d only known Louis a little over two weeks. Were these emotions bubbling up inside her something permanent or a side effect of the nerves she had from waiting for the raiders to attack. Could she really take a leap like this when any second the Delta could tear down their gates and all this could be taken away from her. 

She’d handed the knife back to Louis. Then Louis had opened up to her, thanking her for the times she’d listened when no one else had, how she understood him as someone beyond the jokes he told. Clementine hadn’t known what to say to that. How could she encapsulate the admiration she held for Louis, the gratefulness she felt that he’d forgiven her and A.J. after everything had gone so wrong? She went with what she knew. “Friends are all we’ve got, and I’m glad we’ve got each other,” Louis had offered her a fist bump which she’d returned with a bit too much force, the song Louis composed was named “Super Fun Times Friend Song” and they’d shared a few more laughs before Clementine was called away to watch duty. It had been nice, but something in the back of Clementine’s mind left her feeling that things could have gone in a different direction.

The weeks following the attack on the Delta had confirmed this for Clementine. Every step of the way, Louis had been there for her. During the battle to rescue their friends, when he’d circled back to help her and A.J. find their way to the school, and when he’d run breathlessly through the forest with Clementine cradled in his arms, desperate to get her to Ruby before it was too late. He’d sat by her bed for weeks as she recuperated, playing music on the gramophone since he couldn’t bring the piano to her. He’d helped her navigate the school with her crutches, saved her from many a spill, and was always there to cheer her up when she was feeling down. 

Every time her eyes met his, Clementine saw something in them, a look that no one else gave her, one that sent her heart tumbling within her in an instant. She knew there was something between them. But Louis went no further than those looks. He never took the next step, never asked or said anything that did more than proclaim their undying friendship for each other. Three weeks out of bed and on her crutches, Clementine was forced to face an uncomfortable fact: that night at the piano room had been Louis’ move. If she ever wanted anything more to happen between them, the ball was in her court.

Considering how spectacularly she’d flubbed a verbal confession to Louis, Clementine doubted she’d have much more luck with a second attempt. Should she write a letter? No, her writings skills and penmanship had basically dried up at a third-grade level. She wouldn’t be able to express all that she wanted to say on paper. Perhaps a gesture then: taking on his chores, offering him some of her stew at dinner, picking flower from the greenhouse. Clementine quickly decided none of those would work. Louis wouldn’t accept her taking on any extra chores or giving up her food so soon after losing her leg and as for the flowers, Clementine could just hear Louis’ voice in her head as he told everyone at the school about the lovely “friendship flowers” Clementine had gotten him. No, it had to be something undeniably romantic. 

Clementine was lying on her bed one morning when inspiration finally struck. Of course. She didn’t need to come up with something new at all. What she should do to prove her feelings was the very thing she’d been too afraid to do that night. Grabbing her crutches, Clementine snuck down the hall as quietly as she could, making her way to the music room. On her way there, she spotted Louis standing on watch duty. Good. She didn’t want to risk him walking in on her. She wanted to keep it a surprise.  
As soon as Clementine reached the piano, she plopped down on the bench, casting her crutches to the side. Pulling out her own knife, she tattooed the piano once more, adding a heart around her and Louis’ initials. Next time Louis sat down to play, he would see the heart and know what it meant: that Clementine was willing to give something beyond friendship a try if he was. Her work done, Clementine pocketed the knife and picked up her crutches, making her way out of the room before anybody could spot her there. Her heart beat excitedly within her. She wondered how long it would be until Louis visited his piano again.

That evening, things seemed to be going normally at Ericson. Omar had ladled out the stew and almost everyone had sat down to eat. Ruby and Aasim were sitting by each other with Willy to their right, Violet sitting across from him. A.J. sat to Clementine’s left while her right side, the spot normally taken by Louis, remained open. Clementine wondered where he was. It wasn’t like him to miss out on their biggest meal of the day. 

Suddenly the doors to the admin building burst open. Louis strode out looking angrier than any of them had seen in some time. Making his way over to the picnic table, he stood at the head of it, his hand on his hips. “Alright, whoever thought it would be funny to graffiti my piano better own up right now,”

“What are you talking about, Lou?” Violet asked, placing down her spoon and squinting at him with her good eye. “That piano’s already been graffitied more times than I can count and you never cared before,”

“I’m not talking about the old graffiti. I’m talking about the new addition somebody made today. Now who thought it would be funny to draw a heart around Clem and I’s initials?”

Clementine’s heart dropped into her gut. _He’s angry about it?_ Maybe she’d been misreading things this whole time. 

“Louis, this is silly,” Aasim stated dismissively. “Why in the world would any of us want to do that?”

“Bold words from one of my primary suspects!” Louis declared, jabbing a finger in Aasim’s direction. “If you feel the need to get back at me for all the times I’ve teased you, leave Clem out of it. Our friendship isn’t a joking matter. It’s something I take very seriously, and I thought you of all people with all your talk of “privacy” would respect that!"

“It wasn’t me!” Aasim’s eyes narrowed at the accusation.

Ruby tried to place a comforting hand over her boyfriend’s arm. “Now let’s not fight about something so silly-”

“Silly? Don’t act as if you’re not a potential culprit too, Ruby,” Louis interjected.

“Now why in the world would I be a suspect?” Ruby challenged, her lower lip jutting out as she frowned.

Clementine wished she could disappear into the ground right about now. This wasn’t how she’d expected things to go at all.

Louis rolled his eyes. “You’re always complaining about how everyone’s teasing you and Aasim for being so lovey-dovey around each other. Did you think pretending Clementine and I were a thing would get some of the heat off of you two? Clementine is my best friend, that’s _all_! You can’t go spreading lies to make yourself feel better,”

Ruby gasped, clearly insulted. “You think you can just go around making claims like that? Well, let me tell you-”

“This is all fucking stupid,” Violet grumbled. “Someone just ‘fess up,”

“Was that a deflection, Vi?” Louis challenged, his eyebrow raised. “Did you-”

“Alright, enough!” Clementine shouted, her volume bringing everyone to a standstill. “I was the one who left the heart, OK? It was me,”

“You?” Louis asked, looking utterly lost. 

“Yeah,” Clementine looked down at the table, her cheeks burning in embarrassment. “It wasn’t a joke or anything. I thought it’d be an easier way to let you know. Guess I was wrong,”

Everyone at the table was silent. Willy and A.J. were watching in confusion, their faces still covered in leftover stew. All eyes were on either Louis or Clementine, waiting for either of them to speak. Neither did. 

Louis was the first to do something. Without a word, he turned around, heading straight back to the admin building. 

_Shit. I fucked up._ Clementine didn’t have to raise her head to feel the heat of the stares upon her. Silently, she picked up her spoon and resumed eating her stew. _I don’t get it. Would it be that bad to be with me? There’s not a single other available girl his age anywhere near here. Everything I thought I saw though... I must have made it all up myself._

“Clementine…” Ruby’s voice was soft, almost sad.

She couldn’t stick around for this. Grabbing her crutches, Clementine rose to her feet. “I’m gonna call it a night,” With that she made her way back toward the dorms, unwilling to look back and see the pitying gazes following her. _I can’t believe it went down like this. Here I was so confident it was a sure thing, and then…_

Clementine paused in her journey, looking toward the admin building. Louis was in there right now, probably trying to figure out a way to scratch out that stupid heart from his piano. Did he hate her now? Clementine couldn’t bear the thought of that. Did she owe him an apology for what she’d done, humiliating him in front of all their friends when he could have turned her down in private if she’d just had the guts to confess? Maybe there wasn’t anyone to blame here. It was all a misunderstanding. Still, she didn’t want to go to bed thinking Louis was angry at her. Steeling her resolve, Clementine switched course and set out for the admin building.

Everything was completely silent as Clementine entered, slowly turning down the hall to the music room. She tried to keep as quiet as possible, her crutches softly tapping the floor and her foot lightly scuffing it each time she took a step. She could feel her gut twisting in dread. She didn’t know what she would say to Louis when she got there. Perhaps he wasn’t even in the music room after all. No sound came from it now. As she neared the ajar doors, Clementine peered through the crack, trying to get an idea of what was happening inside. 

Louis was in there after all, sitting at the piano. He wasn’t playing though. Instead he was staring at the carved heart. He reached out to touch it, his other hand coming up to cover his mouth. What was going on? After a minute of reflection, Louis reached inside his coat pocket, pulling out his dagger. He’d decided to scratch the heart out after all. As he dug his knife into the wood of the piano, Clementine looked away. It was a mistake coming here. She should go.

When she turned her crutches to leave though, one ran into one of the empty cans scattered throughout the hallway. Clementine winced as the sound echoed down the hall.

“Who’s there?”

No escaping now. Clementine pressed open the doors, too ashamed to meet Louis’ eyes. “Louis, I just came by to apologize. I never meant to embarrass you like that. Whatever you want to do to get rid of that stupid heart is fine with me,”

Louis looked confused for a moment before a soft smile crossed his face. He patted the spot beside him on the piano bench. “Care to sit with me for a minute, Clemster?”

Clementine was puzzled but complied. Sitting down beside Louis, she leaned her crutches against the piano before turning to face him. 

“Guess I shouldn’t have run off like that,” Louis scratched the back of his neck, not making eye contact. “I wasn’t really thinking that clearly after I heard you say you were the one who left the heart. I had to visit again to make sure it was actually real. And it is,” He looked back to where the heart with their initials lay. “Then I wanted to add something of my own,”

Clementine glanced up in surprise, her eyes locking on the carving. It wasn’t scratched out after all. The heart was still there, and their initials, but something new lay between them. Where before there was simply a C and an L, now there was a plus sign connecting the two. Clementine’s eyes shot over to Louis. She saw that same look there that had been making her heart flutter these past few weeks.

“It’s complete now,” A small grin formed on Louis’ face. 

“I can see that,” Clementine felt a smile tugging at her own lips, a giddiness bubbling up inside her. “So I guess that means… we’re more than friends now,”

“Definitely,” The grin had widened, covering Louis’ entire face now. “More than best friends too! Man, who would’ve thought after that card game where you denied having feelings for anyone that you were in fact _lying_. You do have feelings for someone, someone named Louis. Which just so happens to be my name!”

Before Louis could say anything more, Clementine leaned upwards, capturing his lips in a quick kiss. Screw caution, she was going for what she wanted. 

Louis met the kiss eagerly, his own lips pressing against hers, causing a small moan to escape Clementine’s lips. 

Clementine immediately drew back, her face overheating as she realized the sound she’d just made. She glanced up to see how Louis was taking it, but he seemed to be in some sort of blissful haze, giggling excitedly as he looked over at her. 

“God, how lucky am I? I’ve got the coolest best friend in the world and now it turns out she likes me too? That’s the dream,”

Clementine smiled up at Louis, basking in the moment. This was what she’d wanted all along. She’d just been too scared to let herself admit it until now. Thinking of the others, she turned her head to look back, hoping that none of them had thought to come check on them. “Do you think we ought to head back? We did stir up a lot of drama back there,”

“Ah, it can wait till tomorrow,” Louis waved his hand dismissively. “A moment like this calls for celebration. I’ll have you know I did _not_ plan to call the song I played for you that night “Super Fun Times Friend Song”. I hereby retract that title so I can assign it one more befitting,”

“And what exactly did you have in mind?” Clementine asked, her eyes crinkling in amusement at Louis’ excitement.

“’Clementine’. Y’know, because I like fruit. And I like you even more so… there,”

That had Clementine blushing. She felt her face heating up as Louis began to play the song, the beautiful melody filling the room and dancing around them. Clementine let the music seep into her bones, taking in how much this song meant to Louis. It was the first thing he’d ever composed and he’d named it after her. That was the greatest gift she could ever imagine.

Slowly Clementine let her head rest upon Louis’ shoulder. She felt him flinch for an instant, but he didn’t miss a beat, continuing on with his music without dropping a single note. Clementine closed her eyes. She could see why Louis had gone to double check the piano. She didn’t quite believe this was real herself. But it was. She was home, she was happy, and her best friend was now something so much more to her. She felt complete.


End file.
